As a marketing agency, we offer a number of services to our clients, with social media being an important one.
The vast majority of the businesses we talk to know how powerful social media can be; however, a number fail to understand its basic premise.
Social media (the clue is in the name) is about connections. Any success a business sees will be built on the fundamental bedrock of ‘know, like and trust’. Think about it: how long does it take you to trust someone? Do you bond with people instantly? Would you hand over your hard-earned money to a new connection the minute you meet them? Would it take longer? Would they have to be in your face every day for a week (perhaps this would put you off them a bit. Wouldn’t it constitute harassment?!)? Maybe you would appreciate actually getting to know them. Learning more about what they do and the things they stand for over a period of time. But how long would that take? A month? Three months? A year? Where a number of businesses fail with social media marketing is that they expect results too quickly. Think of the above example: you wouldn’t trust someone immediately, so why would you expect potential clients to engage with you the minute you pop up? Social media marketing, like anything else, requires investment. It may not need a huge injection of money (if you do it yourself), but it still needs a huge investment of your time (which IS money, effectively). These platforms are simply tools with which to build relationships, gather fans, promote what you do and evoke interest. Social media marketing requires consistency of message, to develop the ‘know, like, trust’ relationship. The aim is not to sell to your connections…rather to educate, inspire, interact with them. ‘Slowly, slowly, catchy monkey’ sort of thing. Based on the many successes we’ve seen, businesses shouldn’t expect to see a return on their investment into social media for roughly six months (regardless of whether they’re posting their own content, or a company like Novus is posting this on their behalf). Relationships take time to build – online and offline - and social media isn’t unique in needing time and money from you - there are plenty of examples where businesses have to speculate to accumulate. Traction does occur eventually and maintaining your social activity will become easier. You’ll begin to see responses and engagement from current and potential customers every time you post – just remember that this won’t happen overnight. The groundwork must be done; the social soil needs to remain fertile with rich content for connections to grow and develop. Just sowing the seeds alone, without nurture, is not enough to see your social exposure grow. Novus Marketing Solutions look after the social media accounts of many of their clients, posting effective content on a daily basis for continued exposure. Complete the contact form for more information.
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